re: suggestions for a new bike

Im a little bias, cos I got one but have a look at http://www.feltracing.com/f75.html.Good bike for around what you would like to spend.

Best of luck fm Down Under

Craig

Though it may above what you want to spend on a bike, I really like my Kestrel Talon. For a carbon fiber frame, the price is great. You can get one with the Ultegra setup for around 2400.00. I'm sure that other members of the board can give you their 2 cents on a bike also.

Still Tri'n
Michael Pate

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This user's post has been ignored.

KHS has a good entry level tri specific bike which has a mix of Ultegra, 105 and Sora. It is a little more expensive than you are willing to spend. However, if you can find a shop that will allow you to order this bike with Sora components--and some shops do allow that--then you may lower the price to fit your budget.

I was in the same boat as you twice before. I upgraded my first bike from a department store special to a "touring bike". I found it was great for climing paved hills an carrying gear but did nothing for efficency. I then went to a road bike. The best advice I have for you is test ride..test ride..test ride. I road at least 10 different bikes in the price range I was looking for and they were all very different. At the time I was just looking for a bike that was very efficent and enjoyable on a long ride. I settled on a Trek 2100 carbon fiber. It was very forgiving and enjoyable. The other bikes were much more nimble and a bit quicker, but had a rougher ride and did not allow much for lapses in concentration. Keep in mind you will probably spend more time training on this bike than competing so try to balance those thoughts on your test rides. Best of luck and good hunting.

Joe

So, have you been shopping around for road bikes? Keep us abreast of your current situation.

I'm doing my first tri this year and I did a lot of research on bikes. I decided that a tri bike would be right for me (other may point you in the direction of a road bike with areo bars). I wanted something I could build off of. I finally purchased a FELT S32 which is their entry level tri-bike. everything I've heard about FELT has been good. and the cost of the bike was in line with my budget $1100 USD. You might be able to find something for around $750 used, but it seems like $1000 is more realistic for something with decent components and rims. One thing you'll find out is that the price quickly adds up adds up for things like petals, shoes, etc.... I think I ended up spending around $1500 total when I was all done.

Check out this deal on line. Something I almost bought. but I wanted to use a local bike shop.

http://www.finalkick.com/store/specials.html

Happy Hunting

LA

this was further down in the forum

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp...

Fuji, makes some really nice bikes for the price. I was able to get a roubaix pro for $800, with upgrades that werent even out when i bought my bike at my lbs. They seem really well built for the price. www.fujibikes.com i think thats the url. Im biase on this bike becaus, it fits me, rides great, is light, extremely responsive, and its cheap.

Edited by silent 2004-03-12 7:50 AM

Check out the new KHS, it is around 800-900ish and got very good reviews. it is a tri specific frame. Jack.

Tom Demerly (of BikeSport Michigan) posted on the Slowtwitch Forums that the Felt bikes(F15 and maybe others) had a fairly steep seattube angle and could probably be configured to use aerobars without a reduction in control like other Road Bikes. This may give you a fairly inexpensive way to have a bike for Group Rides and a Tri bike all in one package. Just a possibility...

His post:

We've been working with an interesting thing we discovered over the past couple months.

The Felt F15 Dura-ace equipped road bike has, in most sizes, a steepish 74.5-75 degree seat tube angle. If you use a Thomson center mount seatpost you can "induce" a 76-77 degree angle.

Now, for most road bikes this would shift the weight bias too far forward and the handling would become too responsive. However, the Felt bikes have longish top tubes and front centers- predominantly to eliminate a somewhat dubious concern over toe clip overlap (all bikes usually have this to some degree and it is largely harmless). With the long front end on the F15 (and probably other Felt's too) you can shift a rider's position to 76 degrees (actual, induced) and put some aerobars, maybe cut down a touch, on there.

The result is an interesting, highly versatile bike that does have some ability to walk back and forth between aero and road configurations. This is also the killer ITU style set-up.

The bike is nicely made and rides great, it is a good value too.

No, we don;t have a ton in stock and neither does Felt. I just wanted to post this since it is somewhat unique and may be an additional fitting tool for guys out there.

Take a look at the Holland tri bike on sale by one of the members on this board; it sounds like a fairly good deal.

If you go to SuperGo.com and take a look at their store brand Scattante, I think you will be pleasantly surprised. I just bought mune for under $700, they are basically Specialized bikes with a different name and a much lower price.

Hi syzyl:

Last year I bought myself a Terry Symmetry during their end of season clearance. It was around $900, a few hundred off the usual price, and I think a very good deal. I love the bike. Shimano Tiagra components, integrated brakes, an ergonomic seat, lots of good stuff, very comfortable and sized perfectly. Terrys are made specifically for women so they tend to be a better fit. I find I can reach the brakes more easily, the handlebars are closer to the width of my shoulders than other bikes, etc.

I've looked into getting aerobars, but I'm not fully convinced that they're worth it for sprint distance. The very basic rule that my bike guru friend gave me for choosing between road and tri bikes goes something like this: If you'll be doing primarily tris, riding alone and focusing on speed more than anything else, go for the tri bike. If you're interested in riding in groups, going on longer rides (all day, multi-day), get a road bike for the maneuverability and comfort.

Good luck with it.